The objective is to reach human immortality—that is, to create things which are necessary to mankind, necessary to the purpose of the existence of mankind, and which have become the fruit that drives the creation of a higher state of mankind than ever existed before."

The objective is to reach human immortality—that is, to create things which are necessary to mankind, necessary to the purpose of the existence of mankind, and which have become the fruit that drives the creation of a higher state of mankind than ever existed before."

A new generation has discovered the centuries-old tradition of pipe organ music, that intoning and imposing beautiful sound usually associated with chapels, cathedrals and classic movie palaces of the past showcasing the silent film era.

College students are among the loyal audience following of the Twin Cities Organ Concert Series, a nonprofit organization that provides frequent organ performances in Saint Joseph, Benton Harbor and surrounding communities.

The Twin Cities Organ Concert Series Committee is a group of organists and local community enthusiasts that endeavor to "increase the level of appreciation for the organ as an instrument and its repertoire."

According to Jenifer Milnikel, a member of the Twin Cities Organ Concert Series Committee, through this teamwork, they are able to present guest organists, provide scholarships to young aspiring organists and promote collegiality among area musicians.

You will have to read the article in the link to find out about their 10th anniversary celebration concert

EricKB7DQH

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The objective is to reach human immortality—that is, to create things which are necessary to mankind, necessary to the purpose of the existence of mankind, and which have become the fruit that drives the creation of a higher state of mankind than ever existed before."

The problem that we see of organs and organ appreciation disappearing in England appears not to be unique and the organisers of the Symposium in Zurich later this week identify the problems on a wider European basis:http://www.zhdk.ch/index.php?id=13400

Quote

With concern, they note

that the European organ culture risks losing attention and appreciation,

that the familiarity of the music-loving public with organ music has dwindled over the last decades due to decreasing church attendance,

that in church services the organ is not sufficiently recognized as an instrument that can be innovative and open to various musical genres and is ever more being replaced by other instruments or even recorded music,

that the organ has very little presence in non-ecclesiastical concert programming, nor in broadcasting or the print media,

that the interest in organ teaching, especially at a professional in conservatories, is falling sharply,

that in some European countries resources for the maintenance and the preservation of valuable historic or new organs are scarce,

that due to the change of use of some facilities or lack of interest, church and concert hall organs are no longer used and thus neglected – or even being disposed of.[/l][/l]

In view of the links acknowledged here between decline in organ appreciation and the decline in church attendance, it would be appropriate if members of this forum who have shied away from the issue telling us that it is inappropriate for faith to be discussed on an organ forum might reconsider that position and participate again, for it is apparent that the wider European view is that it is appropriate to do so . . .

The objective is to reach human immortality—that is, to create things which are necessary to mankind, necessary to the purpose of the existence of mankind, and which have become the fruit that drives the creation of a higher state of mankind than ever existed before."

The popular Christmas carol “Angels We Have Heard on High” can be heard anywhere in Jakarta in the days leading up to the Christmas holiday.

But to enjoy it played live on a pipe organ in this capital city, one needs to visit old churches, and hope that the instruments are in good condition, and more importantly to find available players.

Vicky Andreani, 29, was one of the rare pipe organists who made one of Jakarta’s only five existing organs come to life.

“Playing a pipe organ requires coordination from many parts of our body: our eyes, our two hands and our feet,” Vicky said. “It takes time and continuous practice before your body is familiar with the organ.”

Playing the Christmas carol for The Jakarta Post with the 75-year-old pipe organ of the GPIB Paulus church, Central Jakarta, on Friday, Vicky said that performing on the instrument so that the music rose and fell rhythmically was never easy.

However, Vicky found that all of her efforts and the challenges she faced were worth it, equal to the splendid sensation she gets from hearing the beautiful sounds of the instrument, which was developed by Europeans in the 17th century.

“I have a big interest in music, including violin and piano. But the classical pipe organ is more fascinating,” she said.

Vicky has been playing piano since she was a child but started to learn the pipe organ six years ago.

Pipe organs, which once were the most complex man-made devices, is a musical instrument that produces sound by driving pressurized air through pipes.

Each organ may have anywhere from a dozen pipes and one keyboard to more than 20,000 pipes and seven keyboards.

Having a skill on piano is not the most important thing, strong will is.

“I am lucky that I was a pianist when I became interested in the pipe organ,” Vicky said. “At least I didn’t have to learn the basic musical skill, only the technical know-how.”

Another young organist, Ariwandira Pratama Siagian, said that he needed three to four months to get himself used to the device.

“Like Vicky, I was a classical pianist before I was an organist,” said the-21-year old, who likes being called Ari. The student of the Jakarta Theological Seminary said that the most difficult part was toadapt to the additional tools in the instrument, such as stop knobs to control the different timbre, pitch and volume.

Ari said that continuous practice with the instrument would quickly improve the organists’ skill.

Due to the complicated design of the organ, with all the pipes and stop knobs and multiple-layer keyboards, the organs are only available in few churches in Jakarta.

“To practice, we have to go to churches where the instrument is available,” Ari said. “So, playing this thing also requires strong dedication.”

Both Ari and Vicky believed that the existence of such instruments relied on the sustainability of organists. “There should be a good regeneration to maintain the number of organists,” said Vicky.

“Otherwise, the organs will be abandoned in years ahead.”

Calvin Eko Saputro, an advanced organist and teacher to the younger players, said that the instrument was not too popular among the youth.

“It is not about how many young people are eager to play it. It is about how many of them know it,” he said. “Sadly, many of them don’t even know what the pipe organ is.”

Eko, the organ teacher at the GPIB Immanuel church in Central Jakarta, said that there were about 16 organists in the church alone.

“Most of them are young organists,” he said.

He said that the instrument, due to its beauty and long history, deserved better attention. “The organ can be performed for many occasions other than religious events.”

However, Eko acknowledged that the organs available for playing in Jakarta were too limited.

“Classical pipe organs can only be found in three Protestant churches and two Catholic churches,” he said. “Even if there are more people who are willing to play it, there are not enough places,” he said.

Suwandi, the only mechanic and organ maker in the city, said that expensive production cost and maintenance had dissuaded people from having more organs.

Cheap organs, with pipes of bamboo or metal, can cost Rp 500 million (US$55,500) whereas expensive ones can cost up to Rp 1.5 billion.

“The maintenance costs range from Rp 8 million to more than Rp 20 million,” he said.

Suwandi, who has been an organ maker and technician for more than 20 years, said that restoration costs were also pricey. “If an organ is badly broken, it can take more than Rp 500 million and more than one month restoration time.”

He regretted that several people, including the church officials, did not show enough concern about pipe organs.

“I have seen many organs broken because of neglect by church administrations,” he said. (lfr)

Hope

EricKB7DQH

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The objective is to reach human immortality—that is, to create things which are necessary to mankind, necessary to the purpose of the existence of mankind, and which have become the fruit that drives the creation of a higher state of mankind than ever existed before."

The Ventura Chapter of the American Guild of Organists invites the public to “Image is Everything — The Pipe Organ in Film” on at 7:30 p.m. today at St. Paul’s Episcopal Church, 3290 Loma Vista Road in Ventura.

American composer and organist, John Karl Hirten, is the guest speaker at the free event.

From the “Phantom of the Opera” to “Minority Report,” the organ has a distinguished history in film, not only in musical scores but on the screen itself.

Using film clips and background materials, this presentation looks at the various ways that Hollywood views the pipe organ, and how those views may affect how the organ and organists are viewed.

The evening begins with movie-time refreshments in Kahler Hall. The audience will then be ushered into the sanctuary to hear Hirten play some illustrative selections on the Hedgel organ followed by the video presentation.

The objective is to reach human immortality—that is, to create things which are necessary to mankind, necessary to the purpose of the existence of mankind, and which have become the fruit that drives the creation of a higher state of mankind than ever existed before."

I don't know if this organ has been reported before. St Paul's Hockley Birmingham - A lovely Conacher two Manual rebuilt by Hill Norman and Beard played by Thomas Trotter during the Mander town halll organ rebuild. See http://www.npor.org.uk/NPORView.html?RI=N07367 for specification. The church has gone happy Clappy !The organ is in reasonable condition but needs a rebuild.

Hi everybody New to this site/forum, I would like to inform you, or anybody you may know who would be interested, that myself and Business partner have acquired a Church in Kelso, Scottish Borders which houses a JW Walker Pipe Organ from 1900/1901. One of the Carnegie Organs gifted to Churches in Scotland. A real piece of Scottish and world history.

I don't know if this organ has been reported before. St Paul's Hockley Birmingham - A lovely Conacher two Manual rebuilt by Hill Norman and Beard played by Thomas Trotter during the Mander town halll organ rebuild. See http://www.npor.org.uk/NPORView.html?RI=N07367 for specification. The church has gone happy Clappy !The organ is in reasonable condition but needs a rebuild.

We are gutting out the church in order to do some repairs, the organ is going to be sold in order to generate some funds for elsewhere in the building.

Well good luck with that. Organs are like stray dogs. To be loved or given away. Getting anyone to pay much for one which needs rebuilding. . . Well put it another way - who'd buy a stray dog knowing that it will need substantial vets' fees.

I don't know if this organ has been reported before. St Paul's Hockley Birmingham - A lovely Conacher two Manual rebuilt by Hill Norman and Beard played by Thomas Trotter during the Mander town halll organ rebuild. See http://www.npor.org.uk/NPORView.html?RI=N07367 for specification. The church has gone happy Clappy !The organ is in reasonable condition but needs a rebuild.

I don't know if this organ has been reported before. St Paul's Hockley Birmingham - A lovely Conacher two Manual rebuilt by Hill Norman and Beard played by Thomas Trotter during the Mander town halll organ rebuild. See http://www.npor.org.uk/NPORView.html?RI=N07367 for specification. The church has gone happy Clappy !The organ is in reasonable condition but needs a rebuild.

Paul Carr, the ex Director of Music, has completely refuted that St. Paul's Birmingham has 'gone happy clappy'

Just for the record...

The church h﻿as not gone ‘happy clappy, it never did.

The organ is not at risk, certainly no more than the church itself, and that is fairly unlikely with it being grade 1 listed in a highly developed area of the city.

I left, after 13 years as DoM, in August 2016; my position became untenable but this was never to do with style of music or matters relating to music in worship. In fact after I left (followed by the entire choir) the traditional style, with use of the organ continued.

Following a very dark and complicated period for that place, which could be the subject of a very readable book one day, the church finally had a fresh start with a Priest in Charge appointed about a year ago.He’s steadily rebuilding the congregation (which stood at 3) and the place is slowly healing.

The organ is used for the weekly service, played by a RBC Organ Student, and also for concerts such as the run of Carols by Candlelight concerts presented by Ex-Cath﻿edra each Christmas.

The organ is in fairly good condition considering its age, there were of course plans developed for a new organ using the historic pipework alongside new, and extensive surveys and research had been done to ensure that nothing of artistic or historical value was disguarded in the scheme. This had to be put on hold about 6 years ago when it became apparent that the building needed work first and this should have been the priority for any funding.

The building has had some emergency repairs after﻿ ceiling collapses, etc. but is still in need of about £1m to restore it, so realistically any organ scheme is a long way off.

Being pedantic - NPOR records the builder as Conacher Sheffield, a different firm from either Peter or James Conacher of Huddersfield. Bernard Edmonds once referred to them as "Conacher Sheffield, upon whom be maledictions".

I hope the rebuilding of the congregation and worship proceeds successfully.

It’s not an organ which can be assigned to one builder in its current form, other than dating it’s 1964 HN&B. The pipework is a mixture... mainly Bishop choruses, ‘pick and mix’ reeds, even within ranks, eg the Bassoon has two octaves of the old Cremona resonators on 1964 boots, a Willis lieblich, some of the pedal upperwork is ex Great Diapason with the ears removed and the cut ups lowered. HN&B made it work against the odds in 1964, and added a new Stopped Diapason on the great, actually a gedact with big ears used to tune it and tenor G down is the bass of the Bishop Clarabella the top end of which resides in the swell! In 1964 the console and mechanical great action and electro pneumatic swell we’re all new. The soundboards are probably original and in a pretty poor state now. The overriding factor is that it sounds very good!Interestingly, the HN&B plate says “remodelled” rather than rebuilt...